Scenes depicting characters of Asian descent were removed from the film before its theatrical release, including a shoot-out between aliens in a Chinese restaurant, and a sequence where Will Smith erases the memories of a group of Chinese bystanders.

The Daily Telegraph reports that government officials from China believed that the scenes portrayed Chinese people in an unflattering light, with the memory erasure part proving particularly controversial.

China's Southern Daily newspaper suggested that the scene "could have been a hint on the use of internet censorship to maintain social stability".

A producer who specialises in Chinese productions claims that China is "still in the transition from propaganda and entertainment", although he did suggest that the situation has improved in recent years.

Men in Black grossed more than $21m (Â£13.7m) in China for its opening weekend, the largest opening weekend gross for the film outside of the US.

Another Chinese box office success also recently fell foul of the censors, with Kate Winslet's nude scenes excised from Titanic 3Dhref> because it was believed viewers might try to 'reach out their hands for a touch'.